Sports

Santos Laguna has always proved that you can do very much with very little and in their history of their existence they have parlayed that into becoming a soccer club that has become a staple in Mexico’s first division. Coming off of their 5th championship this past May, the Santos front office has taken the time to give back to their fan base both near and far. Which is a good thing, because there is Santos fans literally all over the world. Having been to soccer matches of different levels in numerous cities, I’ve learned that you will ALWAYS see at least one Santos Laguna jersey in the stands representing the team from northern Mexico, guaranteed.

Hopefully other soccer franchises in Mexico will take notice of this effort that is being made by the Santos front office and they themselves will undergo efforts to benefit their own fan bases.

The following announcement was made recently by the Santos front office:

“We made a big commitment to invest in market research that would enable us to communicate better with our community, with our fans, our region,” said president Alejandro Irarragorri. “(We want to) understand what they like and what they dislike, understand how we can continue in pursuit of excellence by generating much more for them in terms of what they give us every day with their dreams of our team. We value them greatly.”

Santos Laguna and Territorio Santos Modelo want to attract visitors, fans, and media from all areas of the world to give them a first-class experience in Mexican football. Through Travel Life, an in-house travel agency at Estadio TSM, visitors – fans, companies, media, and families – can receive preferred rates on hotels in Torreón. Full campus tours are available and staff put in place, ensuring all visitors leave with a better familiarity of Mexican sporting culture and a taste of the region.

Manuel Portilla, Santos Laguna Director of Marketing and Commercial, particularly feels Territorio Santos Modelo will bring a new and unforgettable experience for visiting fans and media who are looking to experience Mexican football in a secure and intimate environment.

“The feeling of security here (in Torreon) is better than before,” he said. “All of the local authorities and commerce industry are now talking about that: how safe it is here. There is a ton of new business, we have many new restaurants opening, a lot of nightclubs; the ambiance is a lot better. And in terms of the stadium, I think we have the most secure stadium in all of Liga MX.”

First-time visitors are going to live a whole new football experience here and inside this stadium. They are going to feel how Santos fans are, they will even be able to feel communication between players on the field. We will have someone to be with them every step of the way to give tours that will show everything you wouldn’t normally be able to see. We know that it’s a very important thing to walk away with the best experience like this when you’re in a first-class stadium,” says Portilla.

Aside from convenient ticket prices starting at 100 pesos for single games and packages at Territorio Santos Modelo, the club has added new features to enhance the ambiance of the stadium, including live entertainment sponsored by Corona, food trucks, different combo items at concessions with reduced prices, and additional staff and volunteers to attend to different groups and sections within the stadium. A special public transportation feature, “Ruta al Corona” has also been introduced, which will run before and after games, to and from nearby communities in Coahuila and as far away as beyond the border of the neighboring state of Durango

For its fans, Santos underwent a restructuring of its ticket packages and is introducing a dynamic pricing strategy, which now includes season ticket packages with added benefits including preferential tournament pricing, discounts on merchandise, and invitations to special events. The club also added a special incentive where by engaging season ticket holders in contests, select winners will receive bigger prizes, such as free season tickets for life.

The 29,237-seat stadium over five levels includes 112 suites, a top-level restaurant with views of the field and surrounding areas around the stadium, a Corona Club Bar, and Corona Lounge for during and after games open to all visitors, including media. The double-level press box can accommodate up to 170 journalists, and an auditorium with a capacity for 100 people sits attached to a large trophy display corridor. It has been host to hundreds of tournament games and events since its construction in 2009, including Mexico’s famous 3-2 victory over Germany in the 2011 U17 World Cup, sending them to the final where they beat Uruguay for their second title.

With “FC Juarez” being a provisional name given to the new soccer team that will represent the Borderland in the Ascenso MX soccer league the most obvious and constant questions with regards to the new franchise were the following: What will the team name be? What will be the mascot? Team colors? What will be the team’s athletic outfitter? Well tonight at 6:30 pm all of those questions will be answered. The front office for FC Juarez will have the official team presentation at the Children’s Museum in Cd. Juarez this evening. The entire roster the club will be introduced along with the team name, colors, and who will be the team’s athletic team supplier. However I believe I picked up a significant clue as to the last two factors yesterday via social media. Yesterday the team announced that the Colombian defender, Victor Andres Cordoba, finally made his way to the Borderland and underwent a team physical and had a solitary workout. Pictures of Cordoba were uploaded to the team’s Facebook page of his physical activity. Cordoba was wearing a jersey that was red, black and white and was of the Umbro brand. Presumably this workout gear was provided by the team.

Hello all. First off I would like to thank you, the reader, for clicking and checking out this blog on the Club de Futbol Indios de Ciudad Juarez. I would like to start off and thank the El Paso Times for giving me this opportunity to cover Indios soccer and share my efforts with the Borderland readers and beyond. I hope you enjoy this blog as I will put a full effort in bringing you the most comprehensive coverage from this side of the border on what is without a doubt, the borderland's biggest professional sports organization. Let us begin…..

The Indios finished the Apertura 2008 Season with 19 points in 17 games. A very respectful accumulation of points considering that the Tribe lost their first 4 games. The Indios looked good and earned the respect of other clubs and even the national media in Mexico as they finished up the year in Mexico's Premier Soccer Division with the previously mentioned 19 points. Those 19 points were good enough for the Indios to avoid being in last place in the relegation standings (with the dubious honor of finishing in last place in the relegation standings going to Puebla) heading into the season opener of the Clausura 2009 season which kicks off on Friday, January 16 at Tecos (Owls) of the University of the State of Guadalajara (UAG), in Zapopan, Jalisco at 7:00 pm local time.

The Indios will go into Zapopan, Jalisco on the 16th of January to have the first of 17 "final" games. This type of mentality is a consensus with this team as they will treat every game in 2009 season as just that…… a final. The number one objective that everyone is aware of, from the owner of the club right down to the groundskeeper at the Benito Juarez Stadium is avoiding relegation. The best thing that the Indios have going for them when it comes to the theme of relegation is that their destiny is in their own hands in that by simply matching their efforts from last season, that would force Puebla to accumulate 23 points in this season. 23 points ??? To ask this of Puebla, a team that had 15 points last season, had no noteworthy acquistions this season, and have already hired 2 coaches this offseason because the first one quite prior to getting to the city of Puebla is a very, very tall order? This team is in a state of crisis that even their most loyal fan can not deny. With this situation over in Puebla, the Indios undeniably have the upper hand.

However, the Indios will start the 2009 season without 2 of their starters and 1 of their key acquistions over the off season due to the injury bug. Franchise player and captain for the tribe, right midfielder Edwin Santibanez and left defender Edwin Hernandez will miss the season opener on Friday due to injury. Added to the injury list over the course of this week was the defending midfielder and new acquisition for Indios, defending midfielder Abdoul Fatah Njankou simply know as "Mustafa", who suffered a left eye injury during Monday's practice. All three players will not make the trip to Zapopan for the season opener.

After a preseason effort the left Indios with a record of 1-1-1, the team heads into the season opener versus Tecos with what Indios Head Coach , Hector Hugo Eugui, descbribed to be a "concentrated and calm" attitude. And at Tuesday's press conference, the Indios head coach stated that he was happy with the team preseason efforts. I personally agree. Indios has gradually improved in all 3 of their preseason efforts. Outcomes of the preseason games aside, Indios played their style of soccer and did it well. Standouts for the Indios in these preseason efforts would have to be forward Hector Gimenez who scored 3 gols in the preseason, Juan Agusto Gomez who has finally gotten rid of the injury bug and is in full form, and to my best liking, right defender or fullback Javier Saavedra. Saavedra is another of the Indios new acquistions for this season. Coming for a one season contract from Tigeres de Monterrey. Saavedra is an attacking defender that will give the Indios a constant initial counterattack from the defensive right side of the field. He did this with great consistency and threat throughout the preseason. It will be interesting what he will do tomorrow against Tecos.

So there you have it ladies and gentleman. I hope you enjoyed what I considered to be a synopsis on Indios Soccer Prior to their Clausura 2009 Season Opener. Please continue to check out this blog to see how The Battle For Continued Existence turns out for the Indios as they put forth their maximum effort to continue im Mexico's Premier Soccer Division. The game will be on Telvised to my understading Live on either Azteca America (Cable channel 9 or regular TV/DirectTV channel 42 or on Fox Sports En Espanol Cable Channel 23). VAMOS INDIOS!!!!!